Construction of side-bearing railway-tracks



/ (No Model.)

0. L. GIBBON'.

CONSTRUCTION OF SIDE BEARING RAILWAY TRACKS.

0. 429,127. Patented June 3,1890.

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WmwSsc-s: v Inventxn UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

CATHERINE L. GIBBON, OF ALBANY, NEW YORK.

CONSTRUCTION OF SIDE-BEARING RAILWAY-TRACKS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 429,127, a d June 3, 8

Application filed May 1, 1885. Renewed November 3, 1889- Serial No. 329,614 (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, CATHERINE L. GIBBON, of the city and county of Albany, in the State of New York, have invented new and useful Improvements in the Construction of Side- Bearing Railway-Tracks, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to improvements in side-bearing railway-tracks which are constructed principally or entirely of metal; and the object of my invention is to provide a simple and enduring track for streetrailways Where a side-bearing rail is required or preferred. I attain this object by the construction illustrated in the accompanying drawings, which are herein referred to and form part of this specification, and in which Figure 1 is a plan View of a sidebearing railway-track embodyingmy invention. Fig. 2 is an enlarged side elevation of a portion of my track and one of the shoes or seats therefor. Fig. 3 is a vertical section of the same at the lineX X. Fig.4 is an enlarged side elevation of a portion of my track and one of the rail-stiffeners therefor, and Fig. 5 is a vertical section of the same at the line Y Y.

As represented in the drawings, A indicates my railway-track as constructed in accordance withthisimprovement. Saidtrackiscomposed of the outer track-rail B, inner track-rail 0, shoes or seats D, rail-stiffen ers E, and cross-ties F. Said shoes, rail-stiffeners, and ties in substantially the same form are shown and described in an application, Serial No. 270,771, I have now pending in the United States Patent Office. The outer track-rail B is provided with a head 1, having 011 its lower face a longitudinal pendent flange 2 and a longitudinal groove 3, the latter being near the inner side of said head. Said head, flange, and groove have the same length as the section or barof rail on which they are formed. The inner track-rail C is made in the form of a horizontal seat 4, which has at one edge of its upper face a longitudinal rib 6, that is fitted to engage in the groove 8 of the outer track-rail B. On the under side of the seat 4, near the edge that is opposite to the one on which the.

rib 6 is formed, there is a pendent flange 7, which extends the entire length of the section or bar of the rail on which it is formed.

The shoe D is preferably composed of cast metal and has theform of an open-endedbox, which is provided with deep grooves for receiving the pendent flanges 2 and 7 of the track-rails, and for the purpose of securing a closer fit for said flanges in said grooves each of the latter is provided with a longitudinal keyway for receiving a key 8, so that when said keys are driven into place they will firmly bind said flanges in place. The shoe D is provided with transverse key-slots for receiving the keys 9, which pass through corresponding slots in the flanges 2 and 7 of the track-rails B and O, for the purpose of firmly securing said track-rails in said shoes and for holding the rail-sections together between said shoes. A bifurcated lug 10, with whose grooved end the sides of said shoe have transverse slots for receiving the cross-tie F, is formed on one side of the shoe D;

The rail-stiffener E is preferably made of cast metal, and, like the shoeD, ithas an openended box form, butis of less length than said shoe. It is provided with parallel grooves for receiving the flanges 2 and 7 of the track-rails, and each groove is provided with a keyway for receiving a key 11,which,when driven into place, will firmly bind said flanges in the grooves of the railstiffeners. Transverse key-slots for receiving the keys 12 are made through the sides of the rail-stiffener to correspond to like slots through the flanges 2 and 7, and by said keys the track-rails B and G are securely held to the upper face of said stiffener. The latter is provided with a bifurcated log 13, like that on the shoe E, for receiving the cross-tie F,whichis inserted therein in the manner described in respect to said shoe.

The cross-tie F is a malleable metal bar of sufficient length to extend entirely across the track and through both sides of oppositelylocated shoes D, or in like manner oppositely-located stiffener-s E. Said cross-ties are perforated near each end to receive cross-pins 14 and 15, the first of which bears against the outer side of a shoe or stiffener, and the other passing through a hole in bifurcated lug of said shoe or stiffener, and thereby the tracks are securely held from spreading apart to destroy an established gage and from rocking either toward or from each other to disturb the proper level of the tracks.

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The track-rails l3 and C are laid with the first-named overlapping the other, and so that the conjoining ends of the rails B will break joint with conjoining ends of the rails C, as shown in Fig. 1.

The mode of laying my track is as follows: The shoes D and stitt'eners E are set at the re quired distances apart in both directions in suitable trenches made in the ground for that purpose. The inner track-rails C are first arranged in place on the top face of said shoes and stiffeners. Then when a few of said rails are placed the outer track-rails B are fixed thereon, so that the groove in the head 1 will engage with the rib 6 of the inner track-rail, and this order of laying said track-rails is continued untilthe trackiscompleted. The keys 9 and 12 are driven into their places to secure the rails B and C to said shoes and stilteners, into which the crossties F are also secured, as hereinbefore described, to bring the tracks to the required gage. The road-bed should then be properly tamped around the different parts composing the track, and the latter will then be in suitable condition for use.

It will readily be seen that while adding materially to the strength of the tracks the pendent flanges 2 and 7 afford eflicient aidin supporting the pavement of the roadway adjacent to the track, and that thehead 1 forms a suitable bearing for the car-wheels to run on, while the horizontal seat 4: aifords a smooth and even track for the wheels of other vehicles.

In the drawings my track is shown as constructed in a direct line; but it is equally applicable to curves bysimply bending the trackrails to the required curvatures and forming the openings for the cross-ties through the track-rails in such manner that said ties can be arranged radially to said curvatures.

I claim as my invention l. A railway-track composed of two trackrails, one overlapping the edge of the other, one of said track-rails consisting of a horizontal seat having at one edge of its upper face alongitudinal rib and on its lower face, near the opposite edge, a longitudinal pendent flange, and the other consisting of a longitudinal head having in its lower face, near one of its edges, a longitudinal groove and contiguously to said groove a longitudinal pendent flange, said groove being fitted to interlock with the rib on the other track-rail, as and for the purpose herein specified.

2. In a railway-track, the combination of the track-rails B and C, which interlock longitudinally, and each being provided with a longitudinal pendent flange, a shoe, and a rail-stiffener, each provided with parallel grooves for receiving the pendent flanges of said track-rails, as and for the purpose herein specified.

CATHERINE L. GIBBON.

\Vitnesses:

SARA E. GIBBON, WM. H. Low. 

